See the full list of paddle brands approved for PPA Tour, MLP events

Alex Lantz

Director, Written Content

Last Edited

Jan 05 2025

Category

News

The United Pickleball Association of America has released an updated list of paddles and paddle brands that have been granted provisional approval and interim certification for use on the PPA Tour and Major League Pickleball in 2025.

The UPA-A -- the governing body of the PPA Tour and MLP -- plans to announce new standards and testing procedures for full certification by the end of 2025, with the goal of requiring full certification sometime between July 1 and Oct. 1.

Until then, paddles are required need to meet the following UPA-A Provisional Approval guidelines:

For paddles that already have USA Pickleball certification, brands will be required to send in paddles to UPA-A for provisional approval. This ensures that the paddles are tested and meet the legal standards for play.
All manufacturers must ensure that the paddles submitted for approval are constructed from the same materials and specifications as the ones used in professional play during UPA competitions.

The following 24 companies have received provisional approval for paddles:

Adidas

Aireo

CRBN

Engage

Franklin

Head

Holbrook

Joola

Komodo

Lotto

Nox

Onix

PaddleTek

PIKKL

ProKennex

Proton

ProXR

Revolin

Selkirk

Six Zero

Thrive

Vatic Pro

Volair

Vulcan

You can find each company's specific paddles that have been granted provisional approval here.

There also are four brands that have applied for and received interim certification for paddles:

Adidas

Joola

Proton

Versix

You can see those specific paddles here.

Some brands are still undecided, evaluating options or have not yet communicated with the UPA-A on whether they will seek certification.

Onsite testing of paddles will be conducted at all events. Only paddles with UPA-A provisional approval or interim certification will be tested and allowed for play.

JOOLA, which sponsors several top pros, has been granted interim certification for its Perseus 4 paddle that is expected to be released to the public this spring.

Selkirk, another major paddle brand, only submitted two paddles for provisional approval: the Epic Project 008 and Invikta Project 008.

Those paddles, which have not been released to the public, will be the only Selkirk paddles available to use by pro players at this week's Masters, which starts Monday in Palm Springs, California, with pro qualifying.

Notably absent from the UPA's list are three major paddle brands that as of Jan. 5 had not taken the necessary steps to gain approval from the pro tour's governing body.

Those brands are:

Gearbox
Gamma
Babolat

If those companies continue to be holdouts, pro players will be unable to use paddles from those brands in 2025 PPA Tour and MLP events.

The companies could at any point reconsider their decision and submit paddles for UPA-A approval in 2025.

Gearbox, Gamma and Babolat paddles are still approved for use by USA Pickleball and therefore can be used at the amateur level.

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